Indian food, fast: New restaurants feed curry cravings on the quick

Rasesh Patel opened Chutney's Indian Diner and Bar at 918 Massachusetts St. in February. The fast-casual Indian restaurant serves dishes including the ones pictured: Tandoori Chicken Bites appetizer, Chicken Tikka Masala and Dal, a vegetarian dish made with lentils. Entrees come with naan and rice and a choice of five chutneys.

The Indian food scene along Massachusetts Street isn’t just heating up — it’s speeding up.

Downtown Lawrence diners now have four restaurants to satiate their Indian cravings, and the three newest are fast-casual or carryout concepts.

The latest addition, Chutney’s Indian Diner and Bar, 918 Massachusetts St., features Indian staples such as chicken tikka masala, vegetarian spinach paneer, samosas and mango lassi ordered at the counter and eaten at tables, or carried out.

Owner Rasesh Patel said he’d heard of similar fast-casual Indian restaurants taking hold in metropolitan areas like New York City.

Some of the offerings at Chutney's Indian Diner and Bar, 918 Massachusetts St. Pictured are the Tandoori Chicken Bites appetizer (in back), Chicken Tikka Masala (center) and Dal (right), a vegetarian dish made with lentils. Entrees come with naan, rice and a choice of five chutneys.

Chutney’s

As it has for years, India Palace, 129 E. 10th St., still offers an extensive menu of lamb, chicken, seafood, beef and vegetarian items in a sit-down atmosphere. India Palace is also locally renowned for its lunchtime Indian buffet.

Patel said Chutney’s aims to serve diners looking for a different Indian food experience, one with quicker service, a more casual atmosphere and less-expensive entrees.

Another thing sets his restaurant apart from others, Patel said. Instead of using ghee, or clarified butter, and cream as in traditional Indian food preparation, Chutney’s uses convection cooking and meats’ natural juices.

“We wanted to do more healthy cooking,” he said. Nutritional information for all menu items is posted online at chutneyslks.com.

Patel grew up in Chicago eating native food his mother prepared.

Indian food was a natural choice for his business, he said. He worked on his plan with help from the Kansas University Small Business Development Center, which provided market research indicating healthier options and fast-casual restaurant concepts were in demand.

Chutney’s offers about a dozen entrees ranging from $5.99 to $9.99, with the option to add a smaller portion of a second entree for a few dollars extra. There’s also family-style portions of the same entrees plus naan wraps, appetizers like samosa chaat — a smashed samosa with garbanzo masala — and a couple of desserts.

Sammi Sangam's Curry in a Hurry is one part Indian food destination and one part convenience store. It's located just across from the Douglas County Courthouse at 1111 Mass.

Curry in a Hurry

Curry in a Hurry, 1111 Massachusetts St., has one table, but most people grab their tikka masala and go.

Inside, warmers are loaded with ready-to-eat portions of peas and potato curry, chicken curry, two kinds of tikka masala, lemon rice and appetizers such as palak pakoda (spinach and onion fritters) and mini dosa (potato curry-filled crepes). Owner Sammi Sangam also regularly makes biryani, a layered meat and rice dish his native city of Hyderabad, in south India, is famous for.